High growth of mobile travel sales – Expected 67.1 per cent CAGR from 2017 to 2020

54 per cent millennial use smartphone for browsing travel products or services online

Mobile apps are frequently being used forbrowsing and booking travel products, services and in-destination activities by all age groups

Criteo (NASDAQ: CRTO), the performance marketing technology company unveiled new findings from its latest research on the growth of the mobile travel segment in India, conducted by EuromonitorInternational. The report highlights that mobile travel sales in India is growing fast andis further expected to rise at 67.1 per cent CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) from 2017 to 2020.

Increased willingness to spend and the rise in number of on-arrival visas has led Indian consumers to go for vacations more frequently to spend more time with their families. This has resulted into a healthy growth of international & domestic trips and of expenditure on leisure. According to the Criteo report, CAGR of consumer expenditure on leisure is expected to be 9.9 per cent from 2017 to 2020.

Dushyant Sapre, commercial director, Criteo India said, “The Indian travel landscape is changing rapidly and has seen a significant growth in the last decade. With the rise of Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), an increase in domestic flights and mid-budget segment hotels, Indian travelers have started spending on leisure and travel heavily. Thus, the trends of weekend trips and seasonal travel have become popular in Indians. Tech-savvy millennial primarily browse mobiles for best travel packages and in-destination activities through OTA mobile apps.”

He further added, “The biggest challenge faced by marketers today is providing a consistent consumer experience both online and offline. With itsUniversal Match technology and omni-channel strategy to bridge offline with online, Criteo is helpingthe travel industryto overcome this challenge. More and more marketers now understand and includepersonalized ad targeting on all devices in their marketing mix. This trend would continue to evolve and help marketers create a sustainable competitive advantage beyond pricing and packages.”

The report further maps the evolving pattern of the Indian digital traveler and states that the ownershipof digital devices, accessibility to the internet, the convenience of online booking, multiple payment modes and favorable pricing are key driving forces for online travel shopping.

Indian travelers do intensive research for their travel plans

The price conscious smart Indian traveler does an intensive research and compares prices before buying any travel package online. About 59 per cent Indians browse travel websites over the weekend, according to a survey. About 80 per cent of people from all age groups prefer to browse and search for travel products and services when they are at home.

Indians prefer mobiles for browsing and booking

According to Criteo’s research, millennials (54 per cent) and baby boomers (44 per cent) most often use the smartphone for online browsing of travel products and services, while Gen Xers (49 per cent) use laptops.

Millennials and Baby Boomers browse for travel products online mostly because of convenience, but Gen Xersprefer browsing for accessibility. The survey also highlighted that on an average, a person took 6.7 trips in the past 12 months with an average spending on a leisure trip of Rs 55,176 with debit and credit cards are the most popular paymentmodes.

Personalised digital advertising attracts more travelers

As per the report, 90 per cent of the target audience has seen retargeted ads and 68 per cent have clicked on these ads while browsing. When it comes to advertising of OTAs, platforms on social media have garnered massive brand recall values. This is also contributed to overall online travel sales growth.

Travelers these days prefer booking online directly with airlines orhotels or through OTAs mainly because it’s easier to modifyorcancel their bookings online. Also, the user-friendly interface and cheap deals attract their attention.

According to the report, 57 per cent of Indian digital travelersare most influenced by travel website reviews, posts and forums, especiallyin the case ofMillennial. However, they are also influenced by experience from their last trip (50 per cent) andinternet advertisements ontravel services (56 per cent).

Consumers are drawn to the fact that online shopping can help them save time, compare prices, and get best deals. These are also among the key drivers of online travel sales.